A seminar is held on the Lancang-Mekong River Cooperation on September 17 in Beijing, China (WEN QING)

The influence of climate change on the lives of people, particularly their access to water, is growing year by year.

In southwest China, which has missed the 2019-20 rainy season due to El Nino, residents' access to water is increasingly difficult. In southwest China's Yunnan Province, on China's border with Vietnam, Laos and Myanmar, more than 100 rivers were either running low or completely dry in April, delivering the region's worst drought in a decade. Water levels in the Lancang-Mekong River, which begins in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and flows through South East Asia, have reached record lows, affecting downstreams in China and neighboring countries.

Consensus among the countries jointly facing this environmental challenge is that unity and cooperation are key to minimizing damage. However, one U.S.-based consulting firm does not appear to share this view. Environmental consultancy, Eyes on Earth (EoE) has released a report accusing China of holding back water to cause droughts in downstream countries.

At a seminar held in Beijing on September 17, experts from Peking University, Fudan University and other organizations explained why this accusation is false, lacks scientific grounding and is politically driven.

"China is also a victim of climate change," said Zhong Yong, Director of the Langcang-Mekong Water Resource Cooperation Center. "Droughts are the result of a lack of rainfall. The runoff from the Langcang River accounts for only 13.5 percent of the water in the Mekong River, and the flow of the Langcang has very limited impact on the flow of the Mekong. "

Dams in China play a vital role in safeguarding social and agricultural security by storing water for times of need. "Thanks to the Three Gorges Dam, people living around the Yangtze River were this year able to survive the severest flood in decades, and collateral damage was minimized," Zhong said. The Chinese reservoirs along the Langcang River play a similar role, storing water during times of flood to be released during the dry season, which helps maintain the steady flow of the Mekong.

Tian Fuqiang, Professor at the Center for International Transboundary Water and Eco-Security, at Tsinghua University, said the scientific basis for the report left questions unanswered. Tian said the basis for the report was a measure known as the Basist Wetness Index, named after the report's lead author, Alan Basist. "According to Basist, the index is not applicable to highly vegetated mountainous areas,” Tian said. "However, the Langcang River basin is a highly vegetated mountainous area. That means the study was based on the wrong premise and its results are inaccurate."

"Rather than saying this is a water issue, we should say it is the U.S. trying to sow discord between China and Mekong countries," said Guo Yanjun, a professor at China Foreign Affairs University. "However, instead of dancing to the U.S. tune, we should continue cooperating with Mekong countries on water issues."

In August, a blueprint for cooperation between China and Mekong countries has been drawn up at the Third Langcang-Mekong Cooperation Leaders' Meeting. With increased sharing of hydrological data and new cooperation platforms being established, cooperation is set to continue despite the efforts of countries outside the region.

Copyedited by Garth Wilson

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